One night recently I was looking back at pictures of Gavin over the past seventeen years to make something for him. It was hard for me to process where time had gone. My little boy was now this young man soon heading off on his own. In my prayer time the next morning, there was a verse in my devotional that was divine timing. It read:
“do not dwell on the past.
See, I am doing a new thing!”
- Isaiah 43:18-19
This verse in Isaiah was exactly what I needed to read.
It is okay to look back yet God doesn’t want us to stay and dwell there. Instead, He wants us to be present and trust He is doing something new. And as someone who is sentimental and can get caught up in the memories of the past, this verse gave me a new view of Gavin’s graduation and the next few months before he heads off to college. God wants me to enjoy the moments and the time with Gavin, not in a “hold on tight and never let go way.” He wants me to be present and trust He is “doing something new” for Gavin, and for our family. “Something new” doesn’t mean bad or wrong, just different.
I share this with you today in case you are in a season of change as well. I invite you to join me to...
pause. breathe. pray.
May we look back but not dwell in the past. Instead, may we take God’s Word and trust that He is doing something new. And with that Truth, may we find ourselves settling into the present moment and look ahead with joyful anticipation of what is to come, for each of us, including Gavin. And when the waves of emotion come, may we allow ourselves to experience them, and then return back to this verse, as much as we need to, as a truth to help us through.
With love and hope,
Shawn